Three candidates for the Top Six
Dan Cleary, Val Filppula and Jiri Hudler could make up the second line next season
Over at Red Wings Central a debate has broken out over whether Jiri Hudler and Valtteri Filppula can follow Henrik Zetterberg’s and Pavel Datsyuk’s development arc. Bill over at Abel to Yzerman suggested that Valtteri Filppula could pot 25 goals this upcoming season.
TSN projects Filppula as a second line center and Hudler as a top 6 forward. The question of course is whether both players are capable of assuming those spots this upcoming season.
First off, those comparisons to Datsyuk and Zetterberg. Here is how each player did during their rookie season in Detroit.
| Player | Hudler | Datsyuk | Filppula | Zetterberg | |
| Season | 2006-07 | 2001-02 | 2006-07 | 2002-03 | |
| Age | 23 | 23 | 23 | 22 | |
| Reg Season | |||||
| GP | 76 | 70 | 73 | 79 | |
| Goals | 15 | 11 | 10 | 22 | |
| Assists | 10 | 24 | 7 | 22 | |
| Points | 25 | 35 | 17 | 44 | |
| P/M | 16 | 4 | 8 | 6 | |
| Playoffs | |||||
| GP | 6 | 21 | 18 | 4 | |
| Goals | 0 | 3 | 3 | 1 | |
| Assists | 2 | 3 | 2 | 0 | |
| Points | 2 | 6 | 5 | 1 | |
| P/M | 2 | 1 | -2 | 1 |
I don’t think you can draw very many comparisons between the two rookies from last season and the rookie seasons for Datsyuk and Zetterberg. And that’s probably for the best; Filppula bears some similarities to Datsyuk [playoff production] while Hudler bears some similarities to Zetterberg [better offensive production during his rookie year]. Otherwise there isn’t too much to draw from when it comes to comparison. If Filppula locks down the second line center spot this season he’s likely to see his assist numbers climb, particularly if he’s on the second power play unit.
If either player is poised to break out in terms of goal scoring it might be Hudler. So long as he’s defensively responsible he’s going to make it tough for Mike Babcock to keep him off the second line. He was only on the ice for 630 minutes during the regular season. If Hudler spends most of the season on the second line and second power play unit it’s hard to see him scoring fewer than 20 goals. Fortunately John Niyo reports that he’s taking part in Chris Chelios’ summer of workout insanity so he should be physically ready come training camp to make a case for that top 6 spot.
Valtteri Filppula’s case for playing on the second line was made quite convincingly when he was playing consistent minutes in the playoffs during Detroit’s run to the Western Conference Finals before losing to Anaheim. As mentioned above, his playoff production is very similar to Pavel Datsyuk’s during his rookie season, when the Red Wings played one more series en route to winning the Stanley Cup.
Some have suggested Filppula doesn’t have a good scoring touch but I think that is getting overstated. First off he was slated to play in Grand Rapids all of last season but was brought up to Detroit due to Greg Johnson having to retire and Brad Norton being ineffective. So he didn’t really have a chance to develop chemsitry with any of his teammates. He started off on the 4th line and moved up to the first and second line when Hank Zetterberg was injured. Even with that being the case, take a quick look at where his shooting percentage last season ranked alongside a few of his teammates:
Tomas Holmstrom - 17%
Dan Cleary - 14.8%
Henrik Zetterberg - 14.7%
Jiri Hudler - 14%
Valtteri Filppula - 13.2%
Pavel Datsyuk - 13%
Now I’m not someone who puts much emphasis on shooting percentage, but in this case it might provide some guidance for how the top two lines will shake out. There’s no question that a top line of Zetteberg, Datsyuk and Holmstrom would be one of the best lines in the NHL. But how would a second line of Jiri Hudler - Valtteri Filppula - Dan Cleary do?
I think the best way to look at this question is to first look at the production of last year’s second line. When Datsyuk and Zetterberg were reunited on the top line Robert Lang centered the second line. The lineup was juggled quite a bit but his main wingers were Dan Cleary and Jason Williams. Mikael Samuelsson also played a fair amount on the second line. Here is each player’s production last season:
Robert Lang: 19 goals, 33 assists, +12
Dan Cleary: 20 goals, 20 assists, +6
Jason Williams: 11 goals, 15 assists, +7
Mikael Samuelsson: 14 goals, 20 assists, +1
Do any of those numbers scream out scoring line material? Only Dan Cleary cracked 20 goals. Hudler, relegated to fourth line minutes, outscored Williams and Samuelsson. Mikael Samuelsson might have notched 20 goals if not for being sidelined with a broken foot; however Cleary is the only player listed above whose shooting percentage cracked 12%. If he can prove that last season wasn’t a fluke he will likely have a strong case for playing on the second line and second power play unit. The Red Wings also seem to believe in his turnaround last season as there has been talk they’d like to ink him to a contract extension this season.
The only question if Cleary secures a spot on the second line is who will take his place on the Kris Draper and Kirk Maltby line. The most likely candidates would be Johan Franzen or Tomas Kopecky, who would both fit in perfectly on the grind line. Next I’ll take a look at a mystery man who might have a chance to earn a spot amongst the top six forwards.
Dan Cleary Jiri Hudler Red Wings Valtteri FilppulaNo Comments
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